CHAPTER 189: THE PURGE

While Wesley was frightened by Leonard’s shadow hands that reached far beyond his scope of understanding, the latter had returned to his suite.

As he lay on the bed, he gestured for Mirelle to massage his legs. Having stood and walked for so long, his legs had gotten sore.

Mirelle didn’t resist this time and seemed eager to help massage his legs.

"Hoh, no complaining this time?" Her lack of resistance surprised Leonard.

"The work you have done today has helped many victims. A little massage isn’t much." Mirelle replied. She couldn’t have imagined that the banquet he insisted on holding despite the tragedy would be for this outcome.

He had truly kept everyone in the dark!

"The victims are innocent. They are merely collateral of those in power." Leonard softly commented. "Moreover, I am also partially responsible for their plight."

"Please don’t blame yourself, Crown Prince."

"I’m not blaming myself. It’s merely the truth that this outbreak happened because they wanted to dampen or ruin me."

"The investigation report already stated. This experimentation and vile stuff happened long before your decision to come to Velastra. I think it’s a blessing that you did come here to uproot the cause before it festered to an unimaginable state."

Mirelle herself knew that the enemies were afraid of Leonard discovering them and wanted to lie low.

Unfortunately, Leonard was intent on uncovering every mystery and situation in Velastra.

Had it not been for Leonard’s seriousness in taking the matter to heart, then she reckoned they would have left the city without any changes.

"Your presence since arriving had destroyed the Noble Faction’s influence, upheld the city’s laws, and even enslaved the representative from the Merchant Guild." Mirelle listed his achievements in admiration.

She was convinced thoroughly this time and admitted that he was indeed worthy of the Crown Prince’s status.

In the face of wealth and debauchery, Leonard omitted them and chose justice.

"I much prefer your somewhat stubborn look." Leonard didn’t feel comfortable with her showing such admiration. It felt a bit creepy, to be honest.

"..."

’I’m praising you and you’re complaining?’ Mirelle was flabbergasted. There were only a handful of people whom she admired and praised.

Despite feeling disgruntled, she suppressed her emotions and asked. "Do you think that Lord Wesley could commence the purge successfully?"

It wasn’t that she doubted Wesley’s ability, but some of the targets in the list weren’t easy folks to deal with.

"If he can’t even complete a mission like this despite having my permission, then the people of Velastra are really a disappointing bunch," Leonard replied.

Without sufficient ability, how could one sit in power for so long?

Mirelle understood what he implied.

"Then how long will it take?" She asked, seemingly in a rush.

"Hmm, do you have something to do?" He raised an eyebrow. "You sound more impatient than I."

The one who should be in a rush was he. After all, the quicker Wesley completed the purge, the faster he could consolidate his power and take over Velastra.

"It seems you have forgotten about the matter." Mirelle smiled bitterly.

"The Aldros Imperial Academy is about to start its new semester."

Leonard looked surprised for a second. "Okay, and what about it?"

"You’re going to be attending soon."

"What gives?"

Mirelle twitched her mouth at his reaction.

"You’re the Crown Prince of Aldros. You’re of the appropriate age to attend the academy, and many are eyeing you there." She explained.

"That’s why I hired you as a tutor. Or are you claiming that your teaching is inferior to those in the academy?" Leonard raised an eyebrow. "But that wouldn’t make sense because you were recruited as a guest instructor. All you need to do is tell the academy that you’re privately teaching me outside."

Seriously!

Why in the world would he attend some academy?

It was just going to be a rinse and repeat of teenage drama or inner competition for the campus belle.

Mirelle was about to persuade him otherwise when Curtis suddenly knocked on the door outside.

"Come in," Leonard responded.

Soon, Curtis entered the room and noticed Mirelle in a kneeling position, her hands massaging Leonard’s legs.

’Damn, the privilege of a woman.’ Curtis thought to himself.

Despite committing a major offense, she was ultimately pardoned. That definitely had to do with her beauty.

Moreover, with how ambiguous the scene looked, Curtis wouldn’t be surprised if the Crown Prince had already slept and tasted her.

Truly a regrettable and envious feeling!

’If only I were born a woman. I could have served the Crown Prince better.’ Alas, there was nothing he could do about his birth gender.

He shook his head to stop the nonsensical thinking. Instead, he handed over pieces of documents and reported, "Crown Prince, the situation in the past days has been a clean sweep. Nearly all the targets in the list within the city have been killed, with their affiliation and organization uprooted. Lord Wesley really wasted no time in the purge."

"That’s to be expected." Leonard wasn’t surprised by the speed. "From the surveillance set up by Mirelle, we can tell that he had planned it for a long time. It was just that he couldn’t handle the aftermath once completed, so it was on hold."

Curtis nodded in agreement.

The purge had little to no effect on the citizens of Velastra. They were all living well from the relief foundation set up by Leonard, completely unaware of the bloodbath happening.

"Is that all?" Leonard questioned.

"Ah, no, Crown Prince. Some of the nobles who initially came to us with evidence against Marquis Darius to switch sides had come to the hotel. They pleaded for mercy and to not become embroiled in the purge."

"Have you investigated them thoroughly?"

"The information is on page 5."

Sometime later, Leonard flipped to page 5 and began reading their deeds in the past 10 years.

"I was planning on sparing a few of them if it was just some embezzlement. But the lives they claimed are even more outrageous than wartime." Leonard raised his voice and threw the document to the ground.

"I understand, Crown Prince." Curtis’s eyes glinted in a cold light, and he excused himself.